| Read | |
Looking in the direction of Simonstone, the Martholme Viaduct 1 mile (1.6 km) south-west carried the defunct Great Harwood loop line of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway over the River Calder |
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Read
Read shown within Lancashire |
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| OS grid reference | SD765345 |
|---|---|
| District | Ribble Valley |
| Shire county | Lancashire |
| Region | North West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BURNLEY |
| Postcode district | BB12 |
| Dialling code | 01282 |
| Police | Lancashire |
| Fire | Lancashire |
| Ambulance | North West |
| EU Parliament | North West England |
| UK Parliament | Ribble Valley |
| List of places: UK • England • Lancashire | |
Read is a village in the Ribble Valley in Lancashire, England about 1 mile (1.6 km) west of Padiham on the A671 which was originally a turnpike road from Portfield, near Preston, to Padiham in the 1840s.
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The name "Read" is a contraction of an Old English term meaning "roe (deer) headland."
The old village developed in the 16th century along the main mediaeval road between Whalley and Padiham.
The Battle of Read Old Bridge was fought in 1643 between a Royalist force and Parliamentarians, resulting in the downfall of the Lancashire Royalist cause.
Royalist forces of about 4,000 and commanded by the Earl of Derby, had taken Whalley. The forces of Parliament, only about 400 in number.
The Royalists had to use Read Old Bridge. When the Royalists approached the bridge they faced musket fire which made them retreat in confusion.
The Royalists gave Whalley and in doing so about 400 largely untrained soldiers beat 4,000 men winning Lancashire for Parliament.
Read Hall and Park was the seat of the Nowell family from the 14th century and Roger Nowell was a magistrate at the time of the Lancashire Witches in 1612 sending them to Lancaster for trial and eventual execution.[1]
In the 1870s Victoria Mill, together with a few houses for employees, was built alongside the turnpike road by the Kemp family and this area of Read became known as Newtown. More houses and shops were built using stone quarried in the village and Read now has a variety of small businesses catering for many needs.
The parish church is dedicated to St John Evangelist by Henry Ross of Accrington, 1884, with the west steeple dating from 1911.[2]
The nearby Martholme Viaduct, about 1 mile (1.6 km) south-west carried the defunct Great Harwood loop line of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway over the River Calder between Simonstone and Great Harwood and was built by Sturges Meek, 1870–77, and consists of ten 65 ft high arches on a gentle curve[2]